NEET-UG paper leak row: CBI arrests co-conspirator from Jharkhand, 6th arrest in case

The CBI arrested an alleged co-conspirator in the NEET-UG paper leak case, Aman Singh, from Dhanbad in Jharkhand, officials said on Wednesday. The CBI has developed intelligence about Jharkhand-based module allegedly involved in the paper leak of NEET-UG 2024 that resulted in the arrest of Singh, they said.

This is the sixth arrest by the central agency in connection with the case, the officials added. The agency had earlier arrested principal and vice principal of Hazaribagh-based Oasis school in the case and two persons who allegedly provided safe premises to NEET candidates where burnt question papers were recovered by Bihar Police.

The CBI has registered six FIRs in the case. The FIR from Bihar pertains to leakage of paper while remaining from Gujarat and Rajasthan relates to impersonation of candidates and cheating. The agency's own FIR on a reference from the Union Education Ministry pertains to a "comprehensive investigation" into alleged irregularities in the medical entrance examination.

NEET-UG is conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA) for admissions to MBBS, BDS, AYUSH and other related courses in government and private institutions. This year, the exam was conducted on May 5 at 4,750 centres in 571 cities, including 14 abroad. Nearly 24 lakh candidates had appeared for the test.

A total of 67 students had scored a perfect 720, unprecedented in the NTA's history, with six from a Haryana centre figuring in the list, raising suspicions about irregularities in the examination. It has been alleged that grace marks contributed to 67 students sharing the top rank.

Later, the number of candidates sharing the top rank in the NEET-UG reduced to 61 from 67 as the NTA announced the revised results on July 1.